by Clarence E. Stowers | Dec 13, 2010 | Apple/Mac, Decisions, Goals, Self-Leadership
We were not created to have miserable and joyless lives. We were created to have abundant and joyful lives. But most of us, such a life is elusive at best and seemingly impossible at worst. Why? We have too much going on and are constantly inundated with requests to buy more and do more. The result is life that drifts towards complexity and paralyzes us from being productive. It’s no secret I enjoy using Apple products and admire Steve Jobs.
I’m not an Apple fanboy, but, I own an iPhone, MacBook, iMac, and Apple TV. The genius behind Apple IS NOT what they make, market, and sell. It’s what they’ve decided NOT TO DO. A few months ago, while reading the Cult of Mac, John Sculley, former CEO of Apple explained what makes Steve Jobs (Apple’s CEO) unique.
He said:
“What makes Steve’s methodology different from everyone else’s is that he always believed the most important decisions you make are not the things you do – but the things that you decide not to do. He’s a minimalist.”
John Sculley, former CEO of Apple, as quoted on the Cult of Mac (October 14, 2010)
Question: Have you created your NOT TO DO list for 2011?
by Clarence E. Stowers | Dec 10, 2010 | Decisions, Empowerment, Goals, Mind Dump, Self-Leadership, Top 5
We live in a changing world. Someone recently said, “the only constant in the world is change.” Let’s face it, we’re changing every year, month, and each week. Truthfully, how many of us look the same as we did five years ago? Not many! Things are changing right before our very eyes and what was on the cutting edge moments ago is now almost obsolete.
A friend recently shared how he went to purchase a case for his original Motorola Droid cell phone. When he asked to see a few cases, the salesperson laughed and informed him that his phone was old and suggested he should check eBay. Amazing! Why? The phone’s only 11 months old.
As pastor who tends to be ahead of the curve on what’s happening, understanding change and knowing how to lead change is an indispensable art in leading today’s church. Over the last 12 years I’ve led our church through some significant changes and here’s a few things I’ve learned about change:
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by Clarence E. Stowers | Dec 8, 2010 | Accountability, Decisions, Family, Fun Stuff, Goals, Humor, Other Stuff, Self-Leadership
On December 2, I celebrated my 44th birthday with family and close friends. During the week of Thanksgiving, we loaded up a rental minivan and hit the highway headed to Jackson, MS. We had a great time bonding with family, shopping, and of course – EATING! I’m happy my wife had a chance to see all of her relatives including her mother and grandmother.
(All the grandchildren posing for a pic…including my Shauntai – my wife)
Last week, my family and I shared a birthday meal together and I hopped on a plane to a much warmer place with a few close friends. You can call it an official “fellas” trip. We had a chance to catch up on old times and enjoy each others company in a “warm” & “stress-free” environment. In short, we had a great time. While away, I thought about my next steps in life…what they would look like…how I would approach the next phase of my life. It’s been said “when a man enters his 40’s he carries with him the experiences from the past and the anticipations of tomorrow.” Thus, I decided to create an organic…ongoing list called “Now that I’m 44.
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by Clarence E. Stowers | Nov 29, 2010 | Goals, Leadership, Personal, Vision
Vision is a “preferred picture of what could be and what should be” according to megachurch pastor Bill Hybels. Furthermore, He goes on to say, “when you put the right words to a vision or principle, it becomes axiomatic. It begins to live! It becomes memorable and powerful!”
I converse with leaders from all walks of life and they ALL wrestle with words to frame their vision. Honestly, they wrestle with words until they are able to communicate their big ideas in a way that captures the imagination and lifts spirits. Personally, sometimes words cannot explain how I feel. However, when they’re linked to music and video, something magical happens. I invite you to take a peek and see what’s swirling around in my mind. I decided to let the music speak and frame a reality I dream of. Enjoy!
My Vision…My Dream from CE Stowers on Vimeo.
What’s your vision…your preferred picture of what could be and what should be?
by Clarence E. Stowers | Nov 9, 2010 | Accountability, Goals, Leadership, Mentoring, Relationships, Self-Leadership, Teamwork, Vision
Five years ago I received a clear calling. This calling was as clear as my call to preach and pastor. God directed me to personally develop and mentor 100 men to become devoted Christians and strong spiritual leaders.
THE NAME – MEN OF PROMISE
The process and material to develop these leaders is called Men of Promise. Inspiration for our name comes from the Moses’ encounter with his father-in-law Jethro who asks Moses, “What are you really accomplishing here?” Moses would sit and hear ALL the people’s disputes against each other from morning till evening (Exodus 18:13-14). Jethro told Moses, “This is not good. You’re going to wear yourself out and the people too.” (Exodus 18:15-16). He goes on to instruct Moses to “select from all the people CAPABLE, honest men who fear God and hate bribes and show them how to lead.” (Exodus 17-21). Men of Promise are today’s emerging leaders in our church. Some are ready and some are raw…but they are our best.
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by Clarence E. Stowers | Oct 8, 2010 | Christian, Christianity, Empowerment, Goals, Money and Finance, Prayer, Vision
This past Sunday, I shared with our congregation how I selected 20 people to pray for who were generous, faithful, and cared about the poor, oppressed, and marginalized.
I’m praying that God would make them wealthy (multi-millionaires) so they could reach back and help the poor & permanent underclass.
Why? Jesus was/is ALWAYS on the side of the poor, oppressed, and marginalized AND someone has to speak for the voiceless. Also, it’s time for a shift of wealth into the hands of Kingdom-minded people with integrity to do the right thing!
I prayed before selecting people because they had to meet the following criteria:
- Compassionate
- Unselfish
- Have extraordinary faith
- Have a genuine concern for the poor
- A heart for empowering those who are less fortunate
This Sunday, I extended an invitation for others to join my list & WHAT A RESPONSE! If you meet the aforementioned criteria, you may want to consider getting in on this prayer. If you are selfish, lack integrity, & want to be wealthy for the sake of being wealthy, please reconsider your priorities before deciding to join.
In the meantime, the Lord wants you to get your financial house in order before the harvest comes & the hardest step is getting started!
Here’s what you can start doing NOW:
- Stop signing up for more debt!
- Save $2,500 and save in your emergency fund – pay minimum payments on all debt until you have $2,500!
- Find out which debts you owe and how much you owe
- Seek to reduce or eliminate the interest you are paying
- Calculate your debt freedom date – using the free tool @ HERE
- Pay minimum payments on all debts except the smallest one
- Attack the smallest debt with as much money as possible
- As each debt is paid off, use the freed up payment money to add to the payment of the next smallest debt.
- Repeat steps 6 thru 8 until you become debt free!!!
You CAN do this!
